FLEXIBLE AND IMPROVED IMPLEMENTATION OF THE EUROPEAN NEIGHBOURHOOD POLICY

The European Neighbourhood Policy is at crossroads meaning that the actual frame of geopolitical movements imposes a new reshaping mainly on the Eastern side caused by the Ukraine issue. The implementation of the ENP through the European Neighbourhood Partnership Instrument, financial umbrella for the Joint Operational Programmes (JOPs), is already a challenging exercise for the Member States working together with the Partner Countries in order to develop an area of prosperity and good neighbourliness. This paper proposes a pack of features and recommendations arisen from the experiences gained by the implementation bodies of the JOPs along the European Union Eastern border, beneficiaries and other experts in cross-border cooperation. The main issues approached aim the improvement of the future cross-border programmes in terms of flexibility, transparency and efficiency: stakeholders consultation all along the programme cycle, a new mix of funding sources, gradual involvement of new types of beneficiaries and programme evaluation.